In a world filled with a staggering amount of music, some unique releases often fall between the cracks. That’s where we swoop in, highlighting new and notable releases that may have slipped past your radar. From vibrant global dance music and fresh afro-soul to gauzy ambient and groundbreaking deep spiritual jazz, this feature helps uncover hidden gems waiting for your ears. Tune in below to hear the music, and if you like one or more of our picks, click the links to support the artists and labels.
Albums
Sonic Hug – Sonic Hug
‘Sonic Hug’ is the latest album by Louise van den Heuvel’s latest project, Sonic Hug, which delivers precisely what its name promises. Heuvel is a dynamic Dutch bass player and composer, and in this record, she retains her signature blend of modern music technologies and effect pedals to cook up a warm and inviting embrace of jazz and emotion. This self-titled debut album features her repertoire and a magnificent lineup of some of the leading figures in the Benelux jazz scene: Hendrik Lasure on keys, Daniel Jonkers on drums and Daniel Comerford on reeds, drawing Inspiration from Scandinavian jazz and modern music. The album is filled with intricate grooves, thanks partly to the stellar lineup of musicians Louise has assembled. Louise also sings on some of the tracks. Her crystalline voice adds an elegant flair to the music’s melancholic undercurrents.
Jonah Parzen-Johnson – You’re Never Really Alone
‘You’re Never Really Alone’ is the new album, out on We Jazz Records, from Brooklyn-based artist Jonah Parzen-Johnson. This collection of eight intimate compositions is for baritone sax & flute, all collectively exploring the spectral landscape of these two instruments in modern jazz. ‘You’re Never Really Alone’ was carefully put together to shed light on a new way of perceiving the core of what music is all about. For Jonah, being connected to those spontaneous communities is the best part of being an experimental artist. He has brought that forth with this album, from the meditative ‘When I Feel Like Myself’ to the jazz standard-like ‘Named For You’. You need this album in your collection.
Arve Henriksen & Harmen Fraanje – Touch of Time
‘Touch of Time’ is the debut collaborative album between Norwegian trumpeter Arve Henriksen and Dutch pianist Harmen Fraanje. They have weaved a series of subtle, delicate musical masterpieces on this new lyrical record. Arve Henriksen and Harmen Fraanje are at the forefront of the contemporary improvised scene. Both possess a knack for subtle and nuanced manipulation of their music’s timbre, phrasing, and melodic approaches. In this record, we have all those but doubled, which is blissfully evident from the musical rapport between the duo’s debut. In ‘The Beauty Of Sundays,’ both freely improvise with carefully established themes, gracefully connecting with each other’s instruments, like picking up and finishing each other’s sentences. This engages the listener deeply in an intricate tapestry of nuanced soundscapes.
Dandara – &Chakib
‘&Chakib’ is the debut album from Swiss Producer, DJ, and Live-Act Dominik Traub, aka Dandara, in collaboration with Algerian vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Chakib Bouzidi who, tragically, passed away after the initial recordings, leaving an irreplaceable void behind. Dandara’s signature sound incorporates elements from Africa, Asia, and Latin America, as well as sophisticated European techno and house music. While all of those elements are present in ‘&Chakib’, the infusion of the essence of Bouzidi’s voice has bestowed a much wider range of emotional spectrum on every track on this record. Dandara has done a spectacular job, both as a guitarist and a producer, and prepared a fitting tribute to the legacy of Chakib Bouzidi.
On-Ly – Wonderlust
‘Wonderlust‘ is the latest album from Melbourne-based pianist and producer On-Ly, aka Joshua Smeltink. On-Ly’s usual house and hip-hop is incorporated with the hard-hitting post-bop jazz-rock of the 60’s or 70’s bands such as Weather Report and Miles Davis Group. And this curves his path towards a new and unforeseen direction with the release of this album. This six-track album is one-of-a-kind in terms of production style and an incredible pedigree of On-Ly’s musicianship. The track ‘J. Scofield‘, refers to the legendary jazz guitarist John Scofield, and it undoubtedly pays an appropriate nod to Sco. ‘Icarus’ gives off the sensation of a classic. Highly recommended; you will love it from the first to the last note.
Jembaa Groove – Ye Ankasa | We Ourselves
‘Ye Ankasa | We Ourselves’ is a powerful and spiritually Rich album from Jembaa Groove, a multicultural band founded in late 2020 by bass player and composer Yannick Nolting and singer-percussionist Eric Owusu. Whenever artists attempt to dive deep into their ancestry and their roots with a somewhat honest and innocent curiosity, you know something great is on the way for them. Jembaa is on that exact path of glory with this album. Deep ancestral flows, between Ghana and Europe, powered by enthralling conga-led rhythms and luscious horn work in their new album bring out the immaculate sense of familiarity and originality in the contemporary jazz scene. In the heart of Berlin, the young and senior generation from Ghana and its diaspora came together for this album. Vocal masterclasses come via Sheffield-based K.O.G and original veteran of the 70s and 80s highlife scene Gyedu Blay Ambolley, with Ghanian multi-instrumentalist and producer Kwame Yeboah also inspiring.
Reissues
David Lee Jr – Evolution
Drummer and Composer David Lee Jr.’s stunning and rare album ‘Evolution’ (1974) blends the deep experimentalism of John Coltrane and Sun Ra with the pulsating second-line and parade rhythms of New Orleans to create a stunning sonic and rhythmical tour de force. In a lineage of incredible New Orleans drummers that includes James Black, Idris Muhammed, Zigaboo Modeliste of The Meters, and stretching back to Earl Palmer and Baby Dodds – David Lee Jr. stands out for his fire, experimentalism and an out-there-ness like no other. ‘Evolution’ is a deep, ‘lost classic’ radical and groundbreaking deep spiritual jazz album.
EP’s
Jessica Ekomane and Laurel Halo – Manifolds / Octavia
Continuing with their ongoing split series of vinyl releases, Portraits GRM presents two extended pieces from Jessica Ekomane and Laurel Halo. Jessica Ekomane gives us the excellent Manifolds, which is entirely computer-generated and is said to explore “the multiple possibilities of polyphonic writing.” Laurel Halo gives us a gorgeous, gauzy ambient piece, Octavia.
